Hisa ni aramu kimi o omou ni hisakata no kiyoki tsukuyo mo yami no yo ni miyu

久にあらむ君を思ふにひさかたの
清き月夜も闇の夜に見ゆ

Roma-ji: Hisa ni aramu kimi o omou ni hisakata no kiyoki tsukuyo mo yami no yo ni miyu
English Translation: Thinking of you
who'll be away so long,
the moonlit night
from the far heavens, clear and bright,
looks to me like darkest night
Meaning: When I think of you, who will be gone so long, even the clear moonlit night from the far heavens looks like the darkest night.
Commentary: Book Twelve Poems Lamenting Parting 3208

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Poems Lamenting Parting"
A woman sings that when she thinks of the one who will be away so long, even a clear moonlit night looks dark. Taking up the moon of the preceding poem, it shows the depth of parting's sorrow through the contrast of a bright night seeming dark to a grieving heart.
The poet is unknown. Book Twelve, titled the second part of "Love Poems Exchanged Old and New," gathers love poems by people whose names have not come down to us, arranged by category.

Line one, "hisa ni aramu," means "you will be away long."
Line two, "kimi o omou ni," means "when I think of you."
Line three, "hisakata no," is a pillow word for "tsuki," the moon, its "hisa" echoing "hisa ni" in line one.
Line four, "kiyoki tsukuyo mo," means "even the clear moonlit night," taking up the moon of the preceding poem.
Line five, "yami no yo ni miyu," means "looks like a dark night," expressing the sorrow of parting through the contrast of light and dark.
Author: Unknown
Source: Manyoshu
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